Matamgi Manipur

by Sanatomba Kangujam The Sangai Express September 19 2011 Located at the margin of the Indian State, Manipur has emerged as a conflict zone with the elites of the three struggling communities competing and contesting to carve out their exclusive political space through ethnic mobilization. Ethnicity as an ideological instrument has become central to the political mobilization initiated by the contesting elites to realize their political space defined in terms of Nagalim, Zalengam and Manipur, respectively. Such diametrically opposing pattern of political mobilizations has produced a conflict situation, or to be more precise, an “Ethnic Triangle” amongst the Nagas, the Kukis and the Meiteis.

by TAOTHINGMANG LUWANGCHA Our social clock is ticking faster than the rattling machine guns in these midnight hours of our collective lives, disturbing every little tranquillity that we supposedly possess as modern human beings. But the irony is, without any hope for a coming dawn, we are getting lost in the darkness — one foot on murky water, another on fleeting, listless time of a lost generation. At this critical moment, we need to make some decisive resolutions and we need to vote for resistance.

By H Bhubon Singh The Sangai Express Aug 11 2011 In his book “Durable Disorder: Understanding The Politics Of North East India” by ShriSanjibBaruah, published by Oxford University Press: Rs. 495/=, he wrote about “The Naga nation in-building-phase”, as follows:- ‘On the question of expanding the identity of the Nagas which has embraced communities with close linguistic and anthropological ties with other ethnic groups their sympathy in matters of identity, the only thing that should matter is how the group wishes to be known. The problem arises when this expanding identity is tied to territory. The newly born state’s consciousness can come into direct collision with existing historical states…” The goal of creating a single political / administrative unit out of all Naga inhabited areas, puts the Naga project of nationhood in collision course with a parallel Manipur project, which was historically, linguistically, ethnically and culturally consolidated by successive Maharajas of Man...

By Priyadarshni M Gangte The Sangai Express August 27 2011 "Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding" – Albert Einstein. The word “Peace” means freedom from cessation of war, i.e. peace with honour, peace at any price (J.B. Sykes (ed) : The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English (7th Edition), Oxford University Press, 1987, p.753). Leiren (Dr. L. Leiren’s Article, “Peace Education in the 21st Century.” Imphal Free Press, 1st Sept., 2006) has elegantly contended that “peace” as a comprehensive enterprise that requires a transformation in our thinking sense of valued wills, resources and solidarity of all. Thus, it is a way of life in which one experiences inner tranquility, harmonious relationships and an interconnectedness with the world. Moreover, the term connotes in the real sense a state of Being (Net). It is about honouring and nurturing our spiritual side.

August 27 2011 The Sangai Express  There are reasons why the pressure of pulls and pushes exerted by the growing centrifugal forces have come to define today's Manipur and one of these could be the tenuous ground on which the idea of Manipur as a political and social entity rests. The pace at which these forces of pulls and pushes have grown as well as the trail of deep divide that these forces have spawned along ethnic and community lines is amazing and surely there are factors and reasons for making the ground so fertile for these forces to grow and prosper. Apart from the dirty hands of politics contributing its share in preparing the ground work for such forces to bloom, what is disturbing to see is the failure of Manipur as a whole to take everyone along with the idea of its existence as a political and social entity. The many disturbing issues which continue to haunt the people on a regular basis can be traced to the exclusivist identity that the term Manipuri has come to ...

By Dr Irengbam Mohendra Singh Kangla Online Aug 24 2011 There is some archaeological evidence that the valley of Manipur was once filled with water. The Meitei Puya also mentions that the water in the valley dried up by draining through Chingninghut i.e., tunnels through the mountain ranges at Tengnoupal in Southwest Manipur. We believe in science because scientists use logic to make conclusions about the things in existence. No other area of expertise has provided us with more knowledge about the universe than has science. There is now definite geological evidence that Manipur along with the whole of the Northeast was once submerged in water. With the tectonic uplift of the Northeast, Manipur was raised from the bottom of the sea as a valley surrounded by hill ranges and filled with water, just like a cup rose from under the water.

Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 in Manipur and other States of Northeast India A special report by Asian Human Rights Commission, REDRESS and Human Rights Alert (E-pao.net) published on  Aug 24 2011 The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (hereinafter "the Act" or "AFSP Act") has been in force in several parts of India, including the State of Manipur in the northeast of the country, for more than fifty years. The vaguely formulated provisions of the Act grant extraordinary powers to the Indian armed forces in the so-called "disturbed areas" where it is applicable. The Act has been at the heart of concerns about human rights violations in the region, such as arbitrary killings, torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and enforced disappearances. Its continued application has led to numerous protests, notably the longstanding hunger strike by Ms. Irom Chanu Sharmila in Manipur.

— UNABLE TO DECIDE BETWEEN POWER POLITICS AND PEACE POLITICS B Hemchand Sharma The Sangai Express August 18 2011 1. One of the great social problems ranking with poverty and racism, War has evoked a variety of responses from Christians, ranging from non-violent pacifism to the idea of the just war and the concept of Crusade. The reasons of such a variety of opinions include the problem of harmonising the OT and NT and the difficulty applying some of the ethical teachings of Jesus. In the OT many passages endorse armed conflict, such as Dt. 7 and 20 and the war narratives of Joshua, Judges and Samuel. The directions that Jesus gave to His followers that they must be non-violent, in such statements as “But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also (Mt. 5:39) and “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Mt. 5:44).

The Imphal free Press August 24 2011 At many crucial and traumatic junctures of history, a very disturbing question always have thrown itself up and not very often was a satisfactory answer found to it. What is this entity called “civil society” on whose judgment many who claim to believe in democracy and democratic norms far too often rally behind, proclaiming they thus have the mandate to do what they do even if what they do is coercive in nature? Is it just a matter of popular will or must there be some qualification to this popular will? In situations of conflict this thought actually can get terrifying. Just suppose the majority voice begins to demand blood or else silently approves bloodletting and victimisation of other sections of the people, would that voice still be called the voice of the civil society. In many of the atrocities committed through history in every part of the world, the disturbing question has often been not just about where have the “civil society” disappe...

By Professor Naorem Sanajaoba E-pao.net, 21 st May 2008 Humanity has borne clear testimony to the resolution of a hundred national liberation issues with the emergence of 143 newly sovereign states joining the world order, subsequently after the Second World War. Recent globalization process is not going to undo the emergence of these nations. One of the oldest insurgency that happened in the North-eastern states since 1950s remain unresolved, let alone half–hearted efforts of the government and deliberate apathy of the world order. The NES peripheral secessionism arising out of hegemonised "National Questions" occurs, for historical reasons, in acquired territories [AA-NSGT] exclusively, not in mainland India . As soon as the government fully addresses the centrality of the legitimate national questions, durable peace could be just a footstep away.